David Moyes insists that Jarrad Branthwaite is fit for the clash against Arsenal at the Emirates Stadium this weekend.
Branthwaite is rumoured to have missed the team’s warm weather training camp in Portugal. He reportedly stayed back to work on his individual workload, prompting concerns over the management of his minutes.
The centre-back has had several hamstring struggles of late and missed a large chunk of the season after undergoing surgery.
Speaking in the pre-match press conference at Finch Farm, David Moyes said, “There’s nothing really new, no, no.
“We’re hoping everyone is fine and Jarrad, we think, will be okay, so, we’ll go into the game and hopefully we’re all fine.”
When asked about the prospect of managing Branthwaite’s minutes following his return from injury, Moyes added, “We do. We had to leave him out of one of the games and I think there was a bit of criticism because we changed the team around for different reasons.
“But it was mainly because we couldn’t play him at the time.
“He’s now back long enough, we played him Saturday-Tuesday, also because after it, we’ve had the best part of a 10-day rest and recovery period as well.
“I think there is times where you have to look after the players. I think the time of Jarrad’s injury and the length of his injury meant we were always going to have to be mindful of it.
“But look, he plays a big part, he’s a really good player, we want him fit for every game.
“But we’ve also got to take some advice at different times.”
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